Hand wrench



" A Aug. 5 v19244. 1,503,533

L. JOHNS HAND WRENCH Filed Aug. 21 1922 Patented Aug. 5, 1924.

:ilvk STATES n 1,503,533 PATENT oFFicE.

LTHER JOHNS, OF OAK PARK, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR T0 VAUGI-IAN & BUSHNESS MANU'- FACTURING CO., OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

II'AND WRENCH.

Application filed August,21,1922. Serial No. 583,122.

To all whom z5 may concern:

Be it known that I, LUTHER JOHNS, a citizen of the United States, residin in the village of Oak Park, Cook County, i(Illinois, have invented certain new andi useful Improvements Relating to Hand Vrenches, 'of which the following is a specification.

These improvements will probably find their` most advantageous application in w-hat are generally called pipe Wrenches, and' a particularly useful application of `them is in connection with what is well known as the Stillson pipe wrench, inwhich the adjusting jaw member is mounted in a swinging frame carried by the rigid body part and which type of wrench is illustrated herein.

Since pipe wrenches are designed to convey rotative force to a cylindrical object they are usually provided with sharp serrations on their clamping surfaces adapted to bite into the object for holding effects. It frequently happens that highly finished pipes and rods must be turned by a wrench, and these surfaces are o-ften greatly marred by rthe serrations or teeth of the wrench. This is frequently due inl large Ipart t0 the fact that the milling of the serrations, notably o-n the relatively fixed jaw at the end of the rigid body part, is not in straight-across lines, that is, in a plane at right angles to the longitudinal direction of the body. `Some inequality in such milling on the adjustable jawv is not quite so serious, inasmuch as 'the 'adjustable jaw is somewhat loosely mounted in its connections af't the swinging Vframe by which it is held.

Such improper surfacing of the gripping element on a lateral slant is due in part to such considerations` asv irregularities in the forgings which affect the milling operation, and in part to the rapidity at which such devices must be made to meet competition. These causes maybe summed up as general manufacturing conditions.

As airesult of such slanting milling or other surfacing on what is ordinarily a relatively fixed jaw member at the end of the rigid `body member, when the wrench is applied to a cylindrical object the bite of the wrench occurs only on one side or along one lateral edge of 'such fixed jaw, and the gripping effectV upon the round object is Vtherefore greatly limited; and because the bite or grip upon the object is thus limited the wrench easily slips and tears away the surface metal, cutting in relatively deeply at the edge portion of the j aw. This difficulty yand objection kis accentuated b the fact that Vthe workman, coming to now thaty he must |bind the object exceedingly tightly in order to get a substantial gripping effect, tightens the jaws upon the object with unusual force, and thenwhen the slippage takes pla-ce nevertheless the gash in the workis rendered all the deeper thereby.

Another consideration in the operation of such wrenches is' the fact that the workman does not ordinarily pull or push' uponv the handle of the wrench with a force directed in planes at righ-t angles to the axis of the cylindrical object. and passing through the jaws. In other words, the workman does not ordinarily make a straight-away pull or `push upon the handle of the wrench. He is not always in position to make such straight-away pull or push. In actual practice for the most part his push or -pull is on diagonal lines directed laterally ofthe true plane in which the force should be applied. This method o-f operating a wrench also results in its biting into the work on one side of the jaw more than on the other. 0n one push or pull this deeper bite may be on one side of the jaw and on the following push or pull it may be on the other side. This action also results in defacing the work and in limiting the effectiveness of the tool. f j

In view of the foregoing objections and disadvantages arising from the manufacture and use of such wrenches, the principal object of the present improvements is to provide a wrench in the construction of which ordinary inequalities in rmanufacture tending to produce .such objectionable results `will be overcome or compensated for, and

in the use of which such ordinary and improper method of use will also be compensated for, to the end that a firm and even bite or contact yfrom side to side of the jaw will be had upon the work whereby the wrench will at once be more effective to perform its normal function and also be a'safer instrumentality to use on work which it is desired to preserve free fromthe -marring actions pointed out.

In the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a side view of a conventional form of Stillson wrench modied according to these improvements in preferred form; Fig. 2 is a fragmentary edge view thereof; Fig. 3 is a fragmentary perspective showing the construction at the end of the body member of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a bottom view of the rocking or tilting jaw member of Fig. 1; Fig. 5 is an end view of the same element as viewed in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 4; Fig. 6 shows the device of Fig. 5 mounted on the structure shown in Fig. 3, the direction of view being the same as that in Fig. 5; Fig. 7 is a horizontal section of the parts shown in Fig. 6 on the line 7-7 thereof; Fig. 8 is a fragmentary side view showing a modified form of the tilting aw connections; Fig. 9 is a fragmentary front or edge view of parts shown in Fig. 8; and Fig. 10 may be considered a top view of either the structure of Fig. 6 or Fig. 9, a sectional view. of an adjacent shank being also shown.

Referring to Fig. 1, the body member 15, the pivotally mounted frame 16, the adjustable jaw' 17 having the stem or shank 18 substantially parallel with the body part 15, the thumb wheel or nut member 20 interiorly threaded and engaging the threads of the stem 18 and positioned in the opening 21 of the frame, may be considered as of ordinary form and construction.

According to my preferred construction, the endr of the body member 15 which is i opposite the adjustable jaw 17 is modified to provide an outstanding substantially cylindrical rib or projection 22 (Fig. 3) which terminates short of the front edge of the body member as viewed in Fig. 2, and which projection 22 extends in the longitudinal direction of the jaw member mounted thereon, that is, toward the shank or stem 18. From Fig. 3 it will be clear that a constricted or neck port-ion 23 is provided where the integral projection 22 merges into the body part 15.

From Figs. 4 and 5 it will be noted that the jaw member 25 is a substantially rectangular block having a cylindrical boring 26 extending from the rear end of the block forward, this boring terminating short of the front end, or at 27, Fig. 4. The boring 2G opens into the inner flat surface of the block or jaw 25 and provides a -constricted opening 28, Fig. 5 which is suliiciently wider than the constriction at 23, Fig. 3,` to permit o-f rocking movement between the tilting jaw and the projection 22. The hole or recess 26 in the jaw is substantially the same in diameter as is the projection 22, but sufficiently larger to permit the jaw to be slid. easily for rocking movements on the part 22. The transverse wallV 30, Fig. 4, at the end of the recess 2G abuts the end 22- of the projection 22 and communicates to the body part 15 much of the strain upon the parts developed in the normal use of the device. The jaw 25 is bored and tapped at 31 coaxially with the recess 26, and the projection 22 is bored at 32 from end to end coaXially with its cylindrical periphery and a screw 33 holds the head or jaw tiltably at the end of the body part 15. It will be noted from Fig. 7 that the threaded part of the screw is of reduced diameter whereby a shoulder is formed at 3,4 enabling the screw to be tightened without binding action upon the tiltable jaw. From Fig. 7 it will also be noted that owing to the close proximity of the stem 18 to the outer end of the screw the screw may not come out, even though it should work loose, and the several parts would still be held effectively together.

According to Figs. 8 and 9 the end of the body 15 is rounded'conveX on substantially cylindrical lines at 40, and the rocking jaw 41 is similarly rounded concave at 42 so that these rounded surfaces substantially intert with each other for sliding movements. The end portion of the body part 15 is then milled transversely to provide the projecting ends 15, Fig. 8. The jaw 41 has a projecting part 41a which interlits between the extensions 15a and a screw 44 threaded into the front extension 15a as viewed in Fig. 9 holds the two parts together for relative rocking movements. A shoulder at 45 on the jaw 41 adapted to contact the body part 15 limits the rocking movement in either lateral direction to a substantially small amount, this amount being of such material extent, however, as to effect the objects pointed out. j

According to both the preferred and modified form illustrated the axis of rocking movement is substantially close to the gripping surface of the jaw, and the relatively small amount of lateral rocking movement desired to develop the advantages mentioned is well illustrated by dot-ted lines in Figs. 6 and 9. According to both forms shown the rocking connection is substantially self-cleansing, and the construction of F ig. 1 is preferred chiefly because it affords litt-le opportunity for dirt to accumulate in the joint.

It will now be clear that regardless of inequalities and ordinary defects in manufacture as to the surfacing of the jaw members the wrench will provide a firm straightacross bite upon the work, and that this bite will be maintained although the body part or handle be pulled or pushed somewhat laterally instead of with a straightaway movement. The shape of the tilting jaw is such, too, that it is not likely to show defects in milling the gripping teeth therein.

These improvements are susceptible of' considerable variation and departure in em bodiment from what is specifically herein illustrated and described, and reference should be had to the appended claim to determine the scope of the advance thus set forth.

I claim:

In a Wrench of the character described, the combination of a relatively long and rigid body part, a swinging frame pivotally mounted thereon, an adjusting jaw member having a shank portion substantialy parallel with the body part mounted in said swinging frame for adjustments in the longitudinal directions of the body part, the adjusting jaw member having a clamping surface substantially opposite the end of the body member, and a jaw member mounted at the Work-gripping end of the body part so as to have lateral tilting movements relative to the longitudinal side faces of Said body part, the tilting j aw member having a clamping surface opposite the clamping surface of the adjusting jaw member.

LUTHER JOHNS. 

